A thoran is a kind of South Indian vegetable stir-fry, seasoned with coconut,
curry leaves and mustard seeds. At The Dock Kitchen we make different
thorans depending on the time of year.

Asparagus, peas, white cabbage and carrot also work well in this quickly prepared vegetable dish. It would usually be an important part of a big thali – the south Indian rice and curry meal that features several different vegetable curries, and sometimes a little fish.

But at the restaurant we like to serve it as a starter in its own right with a chapati and some fresh pickle.

The heady, exotic taste of fresh curry leaves is really alluring, do try and search them out – they can be found in some supermarkets and lots of Indian grocers. If you can’t find them, use fresh coriander rather than dried curry leaves.

Mix the flour, water and salt together to make a firm but malleable, glossy dough. Shape into eight small balls and leave to rest on a tray covered in cling film. Coarsely grate the beetroot and finely slice the leaves, then mix them together.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat. Add the oil and then the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds begin to crackle, add the curry leaves and the green chilli, then the red onion, grated beetroot and leaves.

Season with salt and continue to stir-fry for about five minutes. Finish with the grated coconut and a squeeze of lemon.

To cook the chapati, preheat a frying pan, roll each one out thinly and put it on the heat.

Cook for about 20 seconds on each side. Often in India, and also in my kitchen, they pop the chapati straight onto the gas for a second to finish off. This intense heat puffs the chapati up nicely and chars it slightly. Perhaps not recommended for the home cook without restaurant extraction and nimble, fireproof fingers: the breads are perfectly delicious without.